Hunter Down
by hitherwhitherthither
Summary: What happens when you combine a sarcastic, seventeen year old hunter with the Mystic Falls Gang? Let's just say that even in a town full of vampires, Cori Chayse is something of an oddity. tvd-centric; starts off at "Plan B".
1. Prologue

**A/N: I've been sitting on this for a while now, but I guess it's finally time to pick it back up again. Hunter Down will be a supernatural vampire diaries crossover, but it will be tvd central with a few references/appearances from supernatural. Review and favorite and stuff, I'm still trying to decide if I should continue with this regularly or not, so any commentary helps. Thanks!**

 **disclaimer: Everything mentioned about previously established characters belongs to the creators of spn and tvd, only my OCs are mine.**

Pologue

There it was. I'd finally found a hotspot. Several apparent animal attacks in the last year, all with bite wounds to the neck. I was surprised that it had taken me this long to notice something which screamed "vampire" so loudly.

My fingers curled around my knife, making the faint scars on them stand out even more, tension stiffening my body which craved the sweet release of a hunt. My almost serial hunting of vampires was no secret among the majority of hunters. Any time there was a sign of vampires I was already on the scene, or I the other hunters would immediately know to "call Cori," if there was more than a few vamps. I guess that I could be considered a specialist in this area

Though my searching for, and often killing of, vampires was well known, the reason behind it wasn't. No one knew that the monsters were the first reason as to why I started hunting. No one knew that I had started hunting at age fourteen, and had done my research since age ten. All they knew was that vampires are my specialty, and that I am the best at ganking the dangerous ones.

My sea-green eyes focused in on the location with determination. The heat of my stare could have set the map on fire if I had stared at it for long enough. But instead of burning the map, I raised my knife over the table and plunged the tip into the small dot which marked the target. The forceful thump quickly dissipated in the small motel room, but it rang in my ears.

Mystic Falls, here I come.


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Only my Oc and her backstory are mine, all other things belong to the creators of spn and tvd**

Chapter 1

As my truck rumbled into Mystic Falls I couldn't help but wonder what this case would be like. Every time a case landed me in a small town like this one someone or other would take notice of my foreign presence.

This city seemed to have a great enough population that I could go unnoticed by most, but there would always be the select few who would do something just to switch up my stay. In the past I had been reported to the police for things like suspicious activity, being an underaged girl out of school, and the occasional break-in. Big cities never paid attention to small things like this, but small towns always knew the ins and outs of the whole area. I was definitely not a part of their normal and monotonous life.

It was night by the time I parked my truck at the lone motel of Mystic Falls, so there weren't any questioning bystanders this time. The man at the check-in probably hadn't seen the light of day in his life, let alone gotten to know everyone in the city, so there were no questions there. The only look I got from him was the down-up-and-boobs.

"Sign your name here," he said as he handed over a sign-in sheet. I gave him the half-fake name of Corinne Smith, which I had for one of my several fake identities that I had assimilated over time.

As soon as I got a room key, I made my way to the single bed room. It was one of the better places I had stayed in overall. It included a small kitchenette with a functioning sink, so that was a huge plus. There weren't any signs of infestations or mold. And the best part of the whole thing was the huge, generic painting of a landscape.

I didn't exactly enjoy the massive eyesore of a picture, but it did give me a good place to hide any mapping and research of the town that would help me figure out the current vamp situation. With the painting to hide everything I wouldn't have to deal with an unsuspecting maid uncovering the pictures of a supernatural creatures or bloody corpses... again.

After admiring the luxury of the room, I threw my duffel bags onto the top of the squeaky mattress. My body followed soon after. After driving for more than a day my eyelids felt like they were being weighed down by anvils, and my limbs were full of sand. My eyes shut in seconds, and my consciousness drifted off into a world of darkness.

The next morning I woke to the unfortunate sound of the alarm. It was so goddamn annoying. With a grunt I lifted my lazy arm and let it drop onto the stupid alarm. There was a small cracking noise that didn't sound all too good. I'd have to add a new alarm clock to my list of items that I needed.

With a sigh I rose slowly to my feet and started towards the bathroom. Almost immediately afterwards I tripped over my bag, which had somehow ended up on the carpet in my more than likely fitful sleep. Mornings suck.

I reached over and unzipped the offending bag harshly. Without any effort I reached in and pulled out the first complete outfit that I could pull together. In this case it consisted of worn skinny jeans, a v-neck t-shirt, and a flannel.

The shower I took was quick, as I wanted to start researching immediately. A case like this couldn't wait. With so many violent attacks on humans, the town had to have at least a small nest. It was odd to see so many bodies left around, though. Usually the vamps would take their prey back to their nest and draw out the time that they fed. The obvious kills were, quite frankly, sloppy. I had considered another option before, but now it became a little more prominent in my mind. Maybe they were a different breed.

The kills had patterns, they were in public areas, and even the attacks seemed more civilized, less vicious and bloody, than those that I had encountered before. I had researched every known kind, and these traits matched up with a few of the descriptions which I had found. After searching the internet and shuffling through my books I finally found the only vampire which matched every single description. They were apparently the direct descendants of the original vampires. This kind originated from humans, so they had the most human attributes. The ones which I usually hunted were more closely related to demons, so controlling them was much harder.

With this information at hand, I started tacking pieces of articles, pictures, and other notes onto the wall, trying to fit together a map of the current situation.

My work was suddenly cut off by a loud rumble. Looking down, I realized that it was in fact my stomach which sounded like a Harley combined with a werewolf.

To my surprise, the clock on the nightstand read 9:30. Apparently I had researched through both breakfast and lunch, and even the normal time for dinner. The lack of sunlight leaking through the gaps between the curtains confirmed it.

Grabbing my keys, a jacket, and a knit hat, along with a Bowie knife and several stakes which I hid in various places, I stepped out of the motel room, walked the few steps from the door to my car, and hopped into the cabin. The engine rumbled to life at the same time my stomach screamed for food. Taking that as a magical sign, I pulled out of the parking lot, and drove towards the downtown area of the lovely, vampire infested, Mystic Falls.

The city itself seemed fairly nice; central parks, nice shop-fronts, and good landscaping gave off the friendly rural feeling. It probably looked even better in the daytime, with the shiny white-picket fences lining the roads and nicely trimmed hedges. From my experience, I knew that these are the towns that hold the most secrets. The only question was, was it a city scandal, or a supernatural, "we perform sacrifices," secret that the townspeople held?

The first restaurant and bar that caught my eye ended up being the Mystic Grill. It looked to be the most popular place yet, so it had to have at least some form of good food.

Parking my Ford F-150 in the nearest spot, I followed the sidewalk up to the front doors of the grill. As I entered I was greeted by a blond waiter, who set up a table closest to the bar. His name tag read Matt, and looked to be about 17.

"You know, I haven't seen you around here before," Matt said as he handed me the menu. I rolled my eyes mentally at the commentary. Every conversation in a town like this started with some variant of those words.

"Yeah, I'm staying here for a little while," I explained to the waiter. I didn't provide anymore information than this. This hunt could be one that lasted for a few days, or it could last a month. It was best not to make too many decisions on what story I would stick with without a general timeframe or plan of action.

"That's cool." He sounded a little bit downcast, hoping for more than a few words than the ones which he had received. "Well, if you need any help with the menu, call me over."

Not looking up from the laminated list I muttered a quick and dismissing "Will do."

I hadn't even gotten a chance to read the menu when I felt a presence appear in the seat across from me. My muscles grew tense, readying me to get out of the bar if need be.

"Can I help you," I asked in what I hoped sounded like annoyance. I kept my eyes on the laminated paper to avoid looking too nervous about my new company. The hand of the man across from me suddenly reached over and plucked it from my hands. I let out a huff as I stared where the menu once was.

"It depends on what you think I want," the man suggested. I flicked my eyes up to the man. His hair was black, eyes ice blue, thick eyebrows, and a strong jawline. I had to admit, he was handsome. But this was negated by his posture which radiated cockiness and a need for dominance. He had to be in his early to mid twenties.

"Do you want to be rejected? Because if you keep up with what you are doing, you'll have it in no time."

"I'm truly hurt," he said with fake offense. He wasn't going to back down.

"And you'll be in even more pain when my boyfriend gets here," I lied off the top of my head. The lie sounded convincing even to me. My heart beat had been steady, and I had learned to hide my tells from sight.

Even though it sounded like the truth, and looked like it, the man knew that it wasn't. I could see the amused glint in his eyes. With a smirk he leaned across the table. "Oh, how inconvenient. But you and me both know that's a lie. You know you want to come with me back to my place."

It took less than a second for me to recognize his dilating eyes and drop a small wooden stake out from my sleeve and into my hand. He didn't even open his mouth before the stake was buried into his hand which rested on the table.

"Agh!" He grunted out in pain. A strained look crossed his already pain ridden face. He must have been using some effort to avoid alerting the whole bar of the situation. "What the hell was that for?! Bitch!" he whisper yelled at me.

He reached out and pried my fingers from the stake before pulling the piece of wood out of his hand. The skin quickly healed over, confirming his vampirism. It would have been a bit awkward if he wasn't a vamp.

"Do that again and it'll be your heart," I growled dangerously. Though I knew his compulsion could not affect me, the thought of someone trying to control me was not something that I liked.

Without another word from either side I rose from the table and stalked out of the grill.

I hadn't even taken ten steps out of the door when I was whisked off of my feet by a fast moving body, and slammed into the brick wall of an unknown alley. Pain shot through my back and head where they made contact with the wall. This vampire was much stronger than a lot of the others that I had encountered. If this was normal strength for his kind, then I would be in for some fun.

My fingers grasped at the tightly clamped fingers around my neck, trying, and failing, to pry them off. Each breath was made difficult by my strained trachea. His fingers dug into my neck, sure to leave a nasty bruise later.

"How do you know about vampires? Why are you here?!" The vampire asked in a threatening tone. His blue eyes searched my own. He completely ignored my legs which were trying to form a sort of leverage to push him away from me. My wavy brown hair fell into my eyes as I strained and pushed to get his hand away from my neck.

"Can't - exactly- answer- like this-" I gasped out of my constricted throat. The vampire hesitated as he thought about what to do. Finally he came to a decision, and roughly dropped me before pinning the top of my arms to the wall.

Fresh air flooded my lungs, causing me to cough. I was almost sure that my lungs would end up on the ground from all the hacking.

"Thanks, you're so kind," I coughed out sarcastically. Flipping my hair off of my face I stared up at him with increased anger.

This vampire, ever so cocky, smirked before the steely look returned to his angular face.

"How do you know-?" he started before I cut him off.

"About vampires, yeah I heard you the first time." My sea green eyes searched his blue eyes, wondering how to phrase my words to avoid spilling any secrets that he didn't need to know. "I would tell you, but I don't even know your name," I tried to divert the conversation. It didn't work at all. His grip only became tighter.

"If you-"

"Yeah, alright, no need to threaten me, I'll tell you," I cut him off again. A look of frustration crossed his face when I did this, but satisfaction replaced it when he heard what I said.

The next look to cross his face was pain as I shoved yet another stake into his abdomen. His grip on my arms prevented it from going into his heart, but this would hurt bad enough to slow him down for a while.

With a loud cry he released me, giving me the opportunity to escape. I sprinted as hard as I could, and threw myself into the truck's cabin after violently yanking open the door. With great speed I pushed the key into the ignition and turned it. Hurriedly shifting the gears to drive I slammed my foot onto the gas pedal, and I lurched into the empty road towards the motel.

The whole ride back I kept peering into my rearview mirror and glancing over my shoulder. Even as I pulled into the parking lot of the motel I had to do several checks to make sure the vampire hadn't followed me.

I approached my door, and looked over my shoulder once more before turning the key with a small click.

As I entered the motel room I returned to my wall of ideas. I didn't know much yet, but I did know that this would be a long case. I had to gather information on this species, as there was little that I could find in my notes which I had compared with other hunters. Anything that I found could help out.

With this in mind I made my decision.

I called Uncle Bobby up the next morning to get all of my forged school records in order, and had him pretend to be my father calling for a transfer. It took some persuasion and reassurances, but he managed to convince the school board to let me in on the upcoming Monday. It was already wednesday, so I would be starting in 5 days, on the 22nd of March. I always hated being the new kid in school, and that was when I started at a normal time of the year.

My plan had been to come in, find out what was going on in Mystic Falls, and possibly kill some vampires. But high school is more dangerous than all of those combined.


	3. Chapter 2

I stepped out of the cabin of my truck hesitantly. My fight or flight mode wanted to kick in so badly, and I had a feeling this time around it would be flight. As my feet hit the pavement I scanned the school. It was pretty big, and the school grounds were admirable. Overall it gave off that normal high school vibe. With a deep breath I pulled my unusually nervous self together, and began the journey towards the front office. I could almost hear the death march song from Star Wars accompany me as I crossed the parking lot.

I noticed the odd stares from a large portion of the student body and inwardly grimaced. I knew that I wasn't going to be subtle, but this was just ridiculous. Hoping that they would quiet down soon, I ducked my head down and avoided all eye contact. My job here would be a lot more difficult if they kept this up.

After the stare-filled trip across the grounds I ended up in the admissions office. The secretary looked through the well forged transfer documents and skimmed through my fake school records before smiling up at me.

"You're all set. Here is a school map," she handed me a piece of paper, "and your locker number and combination is written on the top."

"Thanks," I smiled back at her.

"Good luck," she offered before resuming tapping her fingers across the computer's keyboard.

Turning away from the desk I daringly stepped into the mass of people flooding the hallway. It took me a while to get out of the crowds, but when I did I found myself in the general area of where my locker was.

Reading the number again, I saw that it was only a few feet to my right.

I tested the combination, but the metal door refused to open. The second time ended up with the same result. Finally, with a bit of frustration I banged on it with the side of my fist. The door shakily flung open, and I smiled in triumph. No puny locker could get the best of Cori Chayse!

I dropped one of my bags in the locker, the one that held my weapons, just as the warning bell rang.

Adjusting my other bag, which I had bought the day before, on my shoulder, I began the search for the History classroom. I found it just as the tardy bell went off.

As I stepped in the door every single face turned towards me. One in particular looked slightly shocked, like he didn't think I should be here.

"Ah, you must be Miss Corrine Smith," the teacher said from his position leaning against the front desk.

"I prefer Cori," I corrected him, but also said it loud enough as a sort of introduction of myself.

"Alright. Well, I'm Alaric Saltzman. It's a mouthful, I know, so you can call me Rick."

His name suddenly sparked a surprising sense of recognition in me. I had heard his name somewhere else before, but where? It was such an uncommon name that it couldn't be a coincidence.

"How about you take the empty seat over there, by Stefan," he suggested as he pointed to student who had been surprised by my presence.

"Sure thing, teach," I drawled out with a two-fingered salute.

Making my way towards the empty seat, I noticed something about the student he had pointed out. He had a lapis lazuli ring, the ring of daywalking vampires.

That explained the shock. He had probably talked with the vampire from the bar. I didn't know how he knew that I was in fact the same girl, as I looked unremarkable and indistinguishable from the masses. But he did know, somehow, that I was the girl who staked his vampire buddy.

Reluctantly I lowered myself into the uncomfortable plastic seat and pulled out a notebook and pen. As "Rick" spoke about the history of whatever, I jotted down notes unconsciously. Though I didn't like the prospect of high school, I did still enjoy learning. Might as well make use of the time I would be spending in Mystic Falls.

Class ended with the loud ringing of the school bell, and I hurried to get out of the room. Any talking to people was what I wanted to avoid at the moment. Unfortunately I barely made it out of the door when I felt someone approach me. Turning around I saw that it was a girl with olive toned skin and long, straight, brown hair. She seemed like the type who was really sociable, nice, and overall way too perfect.

"Hi, I'm Elena Gilbert," she said as she offered a perfectly white smile. I took note of her last name which indicated that she was most likely was part of the founding families' line. Earlier I took the liberty of skimming through the town's history, and the name "Gilbert" popped up quite a few times.

"Cori," I supplied, "but you probably heard me at the beginning of class." I held out my hand for a handshake, which she accepted.

"So, this is your first day of school here, right?" She shifted her books back into her right arm after having moved them to shake hands.

"Uhm, yeah, I just rolled into town last week actually."

"Oh, where from?" I thought back to my cover story and recalled some of the false identity which I had studied intensely.

"Canaan, Connecticut. It was a lot smaller than here, believe it or not."

"Smaller than Mystic Falls?" She laughed softly, and I released a half-chuckle.

"Yeah, it's definitely a huge change between there and here."

"I can't imagine how small it would have to be to make this town seem big."

"Yeah." I awkwardly laughed, not knowing how to continue the conversation. Honestly, I was surprised that it had gotten as far as it had.

"What class do you have next?"

"English."

"Oh, I have that class too. I can show you where it is, if you want."

"Sure." I knew that I was not flying under the radar at all, and by the looks of it this girl was pretty popular too. I just hoped that eventually she would forget about me and we would go our separate ways.

Unfortunately that did not end up being the case. As the day progressed she refused to leave my side. At some points I was afraid that she would come to class with me even if she didn't have it herself. But no, in those classes that I didn't have with her I had with her best friends, whom she told to make me feel welcome.

Oh, and guess what? The vamp in our history class was her ex-boyfriend! Elena's friend, Bonnie, pointed it out to me in a later class. That's right, out of all the possible guys that she could have dated, she perhaps chose the most dangerous type of guy. I mentally questioned what had caused them to break up. Maybe murderous tendencies? But no, by the longing glances and secret filled smiles that they cast to each other ever so occasionally read that they were anything but broken up.

And not only was Stefan a vampire, but I also spotted her other friend, Caroline, dawning a similar daylight ring.

Though her relationship with both vampires could give me an advantage hunt-wise, I didn't want Elena, or any civilian for that matter, to be caught in the potential crossfire. I couldn't help but wonder if she knew that her ex-boyfriend/secret-boyfriend was a sun-hating blood-sucker? I would figure that out eventually, but I knew that it would require getting close with Elena. Like, extremely close, which was not something that I excelled in.

But some stress was relieved at the moment when Elena asked me to come to the Lockwood mansion with her to set up for the upcoming Masquerade ball on Saturday. The opportunity offered might be enough for me to both form a stronger bond with Elena, and dig up some information on the current vampire situation.

With the invitation and a quick goodbye I exited the school building. As I hurried back to my truck I tried to think up a plan for the upcoming week and masquerade ball, but my thoughts were cut short by the figure leaning up against my car.

"Hey Stefan," I tried to sound as friendly as I possibly could without giving too much away.

He nodded with a small smile on his face. His eyes darted back and forth between each of mine, trying to figure me out, looking for some answer as to who I really was. "How do you like it so far?" He referred to the building behind me.

"It's a big change," I supplied truthfully.

"I can imagine. I heard you're from Connecticut?"

"Yup, I am." I could tell that he was going to prod me, looking for a skip in my heartbeat, something to tell him that I was lying.

"Why'd you move here?" he questioned me further.

"My dad got a job offer at the hospital," I lied through my teeth. It was a job opportunity that brought me here, but not for the dad that I didn't have. "He's a cardiovascular surgeon."

Stefan narrowed his eyes at this. By gauging his response I decided that I was being a little too mischievous. It wouldn't do for him to figure out who I was just yet, so I backed off from the array of blood related jokes that I had stored in the back of my mind.

"Well, thanks for your warm welcome. I've gotta get going, so I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"I guess you will."

I pulled open the door of the truck and hopped into the cab, while Stefan stepped away from its side. With a small wave I backed out of my parking spot and pulled onto the road leading back to the motel.

I turned up the volume on my radio, blasting rock music that would probably label me as a disturber of the peace. My plans rolled around in my brain, coming into focus more and more as I thought over the information that I already had.

This breed of vampires was extremely strong, Flash-fast, and excellent in the hearing department. They would be harder to beat if it came down to fighting. Almost no human would be able to get them with a blitz attack, so I knew that taking an alternate route would be required if it came down to killing one. The least dangerous way of analysing the threat they posed, and potentially killing them, would require getting closer than just being acquaintances. It looked like I would be stuck in Mystic Falls until I managed to do so.

I also knew that these vampires could retain their humanity. Though some with their humanity could be as dangerous as those without it, I had to recognize the possibility that they could continue living here without harming others. This case would require a lot more open-mindedness than most hunters were used to. But I would manage.


	4. Chapter 3

The next day I was greeted in the parking lot by Elena. It also seemed that everyone else's interest in the new kid had faded, thank God.

The morning was essentially the same as the day before. Filled with notes and struggling against the halls' traffic while still trying to maintain conversation with Elena, Caroline, Bonnie, and Stefan at separate times due to the obvious feuding and split nature between the four. I tried to be a little more open towards them, and tried even harder to gain Stefan's trust. I was rewarded with a seat at their usual spot where they ate lunch.

"We have to go shopping," Caroline insisted as we approached the lunch table. "You really need some new clothes. The whole grunge, almost-homeless look is a bit overdone."

"Yeah, that would be great," I replied with fake enthusiasm, trying not to be insulted by her comments. I still didn't know if I could trust Caroline yet, but so far every indicator had pointed to this girl being the least evil vampire that I had ever met. She deserved at least one chance.

But the shopping might just do me in before I even made a complete judgement on her character. You see, I had never gotten to be one of those girls who can stay in a mall for hours as I never had many opportunities to do so. My old and worn wardrobe was evidence enough of that.

"Already torturing the poor girl with a famous Forbes shopping trip?" Elena asked as I sat down next to her on the picnic bench. She reached over and snatched a fry from my tray of food.

"Not torturing, right Cori?" Caroline gave me a look that said, "you'll love it, you've got no choice."

"Oh, of course not, I'd love to. You're coming too, right?" I asked Elena hopefully, thinking of how I could get closer and gain a little more of their favor.

"I'll stop by your house at around five, does that sound good?" Caroline turned towards me.

A small amount of panic fluttered up in my stomach at the thought of her figuring out my current living situation. Caroline seemed to notice the deer-in-the-headlights look that I had for a moment, so I quickly shook it off. Eventually she dismissed it as her just seeing things.

"Uhm, that's okay. I live kinda far away, so I'll just meet you there."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Alright, well it's a date."

I take it back. I don't just dislike shopping, I hate it.

As soon as I met up with Caroline and Elena I was whisked off to the nearest clothing store. A large amount colors and sequins burned themselves into my retina. About half of the items in the store were shoved into my arms as Caroline took charge. Elena offered to take some, and I could barely reply "yes, please" behind the huge stack of fabric.

Trying on the clothes was horrible, as I looked horrible in almost all of it, and the rest was plain uncomfortable. Even worse, every outfit I tried on required me to leave the changing room and show it off to the judges, and almost every outfit received a chorus of "you should get that." And that was only to the outfits with long sleeves and pants. I had avoided showing them skin as much as possible, as explaining the large amount of scars from hunting that covered my body would be difficult.

Even then they were able to deem my body "better than a model's." I brushed it off, knowing that if they saw what it really looked like they wouldn't think that for much longer.

But the most horrible part of it all were the shoes. Both of them gave me at least one pair of heels that could be used as a weapon against the wearer or their opponent. I had never owned a pair of high-heels in my life, and starting off with ones that had to be at least six inches tall was not at all fun.

In the end of the whole ordeal I only walked out with a pair of jeans, shorts, and a plain white t-shirt, much to Caroline's dismay. At the next store I was forced to make up for it by buying an assortment of lacy bras and underwear. I also snagged a pair of opaque tights, just incase I was forced to wear shorts or a skirt in public sometime in the future.

But they weren't done yet. Oh no, they decided to drag me into- wait for it- a dress shop. In the time that I had been trying on a million different outfits they had all decided for me that I would be going to the masquerade ball. Going to set it up apparently was not enough.

"But I don't even have a date," I protested as they led me in through the gates of hell.

"I don't either, but you don't see me complaining," Elena replied vehemently.

"Really, I don't need to go." Even if it might be a good opportunity to get in on all the action, there was a point where I needed to draw a line. That line just so happened to be in front of the dress shop.

"Come on, Cori, it'll be fun," Elena prompted.

"I don't know."

"It's already been decided, you are coming," Caroline firmly stated.

"Alright," I sighed in resignation after a moment's thought, "but I know I'm gonna regret this."

Caroline squealed with happiness, and she shoved me into a changing room.

Dress after dress they passed into the small room, and dress after dress I refused to show them, or even try on. They all looked horrible on me.

I was down to the last three dresses, and the regret was already beginning to show. Two of them were covered in sequins and other flashy things. The other one was a simple strapless black dress that had lace lining the hem at the bottom. Deeming this the most likely candidate, I pulled it on and zipped up the back. One thing that I neglected to notice was that the sides had cutouts, so portions of my side were completely exposed, though no scars were visible that couldn't be hidden with tights except for the large one on my right arm and a scar from a bullet on my left shoulder that was easily hidden by my hair. The thing that worried me was my anti-possession tattoo. I had put it on my ribs hoping that no one would ever see it and question it. A small portion of the black ink was visible through the cutouts. To people unused to it it would be even more prominent.

I was about to take it off when Caroline decided that I had to come out, or they were coming in. Biting my lip, I pulled on my new pair of tights, sucked it up, and opened the door.

All around there were nods of approval.

"You look great," Caroline said with a wide smile.

"Absolutely gorgeous," Elena added on.

"Thanks guys."

So far so good, nobody has noti-

"Oh my God, you have a tattoo!" Caroline exclaimed.

Damn it.

"Uhm, yeah, I got it a few months ago…"

"What is it of?" Elena asked innocently.

"A star surrounded by the Sun..."

"Why'd you get it?" Caroline asked in a way that implied both her surprise and pleasant curiosity.

"I got it because even though the sun may be very important to everyone on Earth, it is the same as any other star, and equal in the grand scheme of the universe. It symbolizes that the bad days are just one out of thousands of good ones, and insignificant in the grand scheme of things." Both girls admired my explanation with a sense of respect. Even I had to give myself props. I completely bullshitted that.

"Cori, you have to buy this," Caroline pleaded.

"I don't know…"

"Come on, it's either this or going naked, because you are going, and you aren't going in jeans and a t-shirt."

"Alright, fine, I'll buy it."

Caroline let out another noise that I assume meant happiness. Boy, this girl was a squealer.

The woman at the cash register package up the dress and rung me up. I nearly had a heart attack at the sight of how much it cost, but I kept it low-key. My dad was supposed to be a doctor, and that meant I had to play the role of middle-class citizen. Plus, it's not like I was paying for it, as my credit card was included in the many fraudulent acts I had committed.

I should have been an actress, because at the rate I'm going, I could win an oscar for best female performance.


	5. Chapter 4

On Friday Stefan confronted me after a certain incident which involved a wooden stake falling out of my locker when I got to school.

I tried to shove the goddamned stick into my locker before he noticed, but it didn't work, at all. As I passed a janitor's closet I was abruptly pushed in by Stefan. He was a lot less forceful than the other vampire, who I learned was his brother after a bit of research, but he still pinned my arms to where I couldn't reach any of my hidden stakes.

"Well, this is quite the predicament we're in," I smirked up at him. "You must know that I am not into taken men."

"Drop the act and tell me what you're doing here," he brushed off my remarks.

"Well I was just walking through the hallway when a random dude pulled me into a supply clo-"

"I know it was you who staked my brother at the grill."

"Alright, getting right down to business. Yeah, I staked him, so what."

"Why?"

"Well I hear it's a good way of getting rid of vampires when they're being annoying; especially when they can't take no for an answer."

Stefan seemed at a loss for words for a moment. His forest green eyes bore into my own sea green orbs.

"How do you know about us, about vampires," he finally found his voice.

"Same way everyone does; through experience." With a twinge of pain remembered the day that I learned that for myself.

Stefan must have seen the emotion that had flashed in my eyes, because his grip loosened a bit more. Not enough for me to be able to break away from him, but enough for a noticeable pressure to be relieved off of my forearms.

"Why are you here, you still haven't answered me that."

"To save people." That was the only motivator that I had ever had while hunting.

"One more question..." Stefan looked back and forth between my eyes. "Can I trust you?"

"As much as I trust you." I stared back fiercely. A battle raged in his eyes as he thought of what to do.

Slowly he released his grip, and I brought my arms back down to my sides.

"Who else knows? About the supernatural, that is." I finally asked the question which had been on my mind.

"Elena, Caroline, Bonnie, Alaric, and Elena's brother, Jeremy." The list was longer than I expected, but most of them made sense. The only one that seemed odd was Alaric. But then it hit me. The reason that his name seemed familiar was because he was another hunter known for his vampire-ganking skills. I would have to talk to him later.

"I need you to do something for me, alright? I need you to not tell them about me." Stefan looked at me like I was stupid for even asking. "Not yet at least. Give me until the end of the weekend to tell them."

"I will tell them if you don't," he clarified. "If you hurt Elena-"

"I won't hurt her, I don't roll that way, but I do actually want to be friends with them, and having you tell them who I really am would ruin my chances." He looked for any sign that might show I was untrustworthy. Even a sliver of doubt to make my words void.

"Okay." Even as he gave me his trust he continued to analyze every bit of my face. His posture still showed his protectiveness towards his friends and wariness towards me.

"Thank you, so much." I made my way around him and opened the door. By now the halls were empty, so he didn't have to worry about emerging from the supply closet with me.

With a salute, I turned and made my way towards the Latin classroom. Both of our footsteps echoed through the empty corridor, his getting softer as the distance between us grew. Eventually mine were the only ones to be heard.

By the time the end of school rolled around I was becoming nervous. If I didn't tell Elena who I was by the end of the weekend, Stefan would tell her, and I would lose the chance to gain valuable information from their friend group. On the other hand, I still didn't know how she would react to me knowing about vampires. She could still shut me out for quite a while. And even then, if she somehow figured out that I didn't just know about them, and I hunted vampires and more, it could be detrimental to the hunt.

I had to be careful in the way I went about this.

Unfortunately carefulness was not in fate's plan, because when I tried to start my truck the engine gave out.

Panicked, I tried everything to get it working again. Nothing happened.

I rushed to the front and lifted up the hood. I fidgeted around with several parts, but nothing appeared to be wrong. Until I checked the spark plug. It was completely worn out. The car wouldn't start without it, so I would be forced to walk the eight miles back to the motel for one of the replacements I had on hand.

"Dammit!" I shouted, slamming the hood shut.

Several people gave me a sideways glance, but they continued walking.

"What's the problem," Elena asked as approached me and the goddamn stupid truck. I guess she heard my little freakout from across the parking lot.

"It's nothing. Just the idiotic car won't start because it needs a new sparkplug."

"I can give you a ride home if you want." The opportunity I had been waiting for had arrived, but was it the best way to spill my secret? There was only one way to find out.

"If you wouldn't mind."

"It's no problem, really."

"Awesome, that'd be great." The car that she led me to was a red mini-coop.

"Hop in," she said with a smile as she ducked into the driver's seat.

I opened the door on the passenger's side and gracefully plopped down into the comfy seat. The interior was a lot nicer than mine, I had to admit. It even had seat heaters!

"Nice ride."

"Thanks, it's my aunt Jenna's though."

"Do you live with her?" I hadn't really heard much about her family, other than her brother, whom Stefan told me about.

"Yeah. My parents passed away last year, so she moved in with us." Now I understood why.

"Sorry."

Elena looked over to me, a bit of shock in her eyes. I guess she usually expected the sound of sympathetic "I'm sorry"s and not empathetic ones.

"How'd it happen? If you don't mind my asking"

"No, I don't. I was in a car with my parents, and my dad swerved to avoid hitting someone on the road. We went over the side rail of Wickery bridge. Someone saved me, but they couldn't get to my parents in time.

"So, what about your family?" She asked immediately afterward, trying to divert the question to a happier subject. That kind of failed though.

"They're dead." The car went silent, with only the hum of the engine to fill up the background. Whatever she was expecting, it wasn't that. "At least I think my parents are. I never really knew them. I grew up in an orphanage and ran away at fifteen. I'm emancipated now, though, so you're not harboring a fugitive or anything." I tried my way at humor, but it didn't work. I couldn't even fully convince myself to sound funny, as everything I said was either a half-lie or an omission of the truth, which really can get to a girl after a while.

"Oh," was all she had to say. "But Stefan told me you moved here with your dad because he had a job opportunity." Questions flitted across her face. No doubt one of them was "what other lies has she told me?"

"Yeah, I lied. People don't really look at you the same when you tell them that you're an orphan." A look of realization dawned upon her face, understanding that I was in the exact situation as her. "Turn right here."

"So you moved here alone?"

"Yeah. It seemed like a nice idea, leaving the place where everyone knew and pitied me. I hated it, how they'd either be cautious around me, like I was fragile, or they would pick at it like there was something wrong with me."

"The pity is definitely the worst."

"And when someone who doesn't know you asks about your parents?"

"Man that is the worst!" Elena laughed. I joined in.

"When you explain it to them you can just see the back peddling! It's like 'Oh shit! Oh shit! Sorry, oh my God! My bad, continue on and I'll just dig myself a hole where I will lay down in it for the rest of my life!'"

Our laughter filled the car, and I snorted once, causing the fit of giggles to grow louder.

Until I remembered what else I forgot to explain.

At my sudden silence a worried look crossed Elena's face.

"Pull over, there's something that I have to tell you."

With worry still evident on her face she pulled to the side of the road and parked the car. My fingers reached up for the necklace around my neck that was worn from age and repetitive rubbing. I continued to debate how to tell her, or if I even wanted to. No, I had to tell her.

Sucking up my courage, I turned over to her still form. The only way that I could think to do this was just to rip off the bandaid.

"I know about vampires." I bit my lip in nervousness, and my fingers continued to fiddle with the warm metal on my neck. The amount of expression that flooded her eyes was almost amusing. I waited for her to yell, to kick me out, to get angry.

"How?" Was all she asked.

So badly I wanted to tell her the whole truth. I wanted to let someone, anyone know. But I couldn't. I had spent so long hiding my past and covering things up that I didn't know how to explain what I had gone through. Even though hunters knew that vampires had ruined my life, they didn't even know the half of it.

"They killed my family," I let out in hardly more than a whisper.

Her eyes widened, before realization seemed to work its way into her mind.

"You hunt them, don't you? That's the reason you're here, right? To kill them?" Silent anger tinged with sadness flooded her voice.

"Only if I have to," I tried to explain. "If they can maintain their humanity and not hurt anyone, then my job here is done. But if they cross the line, if they harm innocent people, I can't let them remain in existence. It's up to them whether or not they die again."

Elena took a moment to absorb everything. Her mental cogs turned, trying to come up with something to say.

"If you hurt Stefan-"

"I'm not going to. For whatever reason, he seems completely grounded, with his humanity still intact. I don't just kill vampires to kill. I kill to prevent people from getting hurt. The world isn't as black and white as some hunters say it is.

"And Elena," I started, knowing exactly what she was thinking, "Stefan wasn't even on my mind when I wanted to become friends. It may surprise you, but friends are not my forte. You've made my life better than it has ever been just in the past three days." I even shocked myself by saying that. But it was true, it just took me a bit of time to realise that. The corner of her mouth lifted. "You're pretty awesome, you know." I gently shoved her shoulder.

Before I knew what was happening arms were wrapped around me in a tight embrace. It was slightly awkward as Elena leaned over the gear shifter, but it felt nice. It reassured me that I wasn't going to lose the first friend that I'd had in a long time.

As I pulled back I saw her mouth stretch into a wide smile.

"I really appreciate you being truthful. It means a lot." Internally I grimaced. I didn't deserve her kindness. She didn't even know the full story. But deeper down I was beaming. Letting that weight off of my shoulders, even if it was only a fraction of it, was a relief.

"You know, I still have no idea how to tell anyone else about this." I laughed and sank into my seat. "If you want you can explain this to Bonnie and Caroline." My mouth spread into a pleading grin, hoping that I would not have to relive this experience again. Sure it felt good to get it off of my shoulders, but the stress of anticipation was not so fun.

"Are you sure?" Her features twisted in question.

"Yeah, completely."

"Alright," She resigned, releasing prior doubt from her voice.

"Thank you."

As we sat in the car provided me with a new set of secrets; more specifically, what was going on in Mystic Falls. The complicated web of information grew with each tidbit she added in. This was a lot more complicated than what I had expected, and it threw the entire situation into more shades of gray, with a few splashes of color that I didn't even know existed. Even thirty minutes later she hadn't explained the entire situation.

We agreed that we would talk about it later when we had more time, and when we had more people to explain their sides of the story. So we pulled back onto the road and continued on our way to get my spark plug.


	6. Chapter 5

My lack of truthfulness is gonna kill me one day.

Already I had had enough time to get character read on Elena. She was really kind, forgiving, and trusting. But she also had a stubborn streak that would make continuing to live in a motel impossible if she saw where I was staying. She would either make me get better accommodations in town, or more likely, she would make me move in with her. It wasn't hard to tell that she wouldn't stand by in luxury while watching me live in a lower quality place. So that is why I told her to drop me off at the bed and breakfast which happened to be one minute away from the motel where I was staying. It would look nice enough that she wouldn't bother me about it, and I could continue to live my life in my usual solitary way. No attachments, no problem.

I made sure to emphasize made up facts about how great the bed and breakfast was, and how it was in a great location too. She was hesitant at first to let me stay, but with the added detail of the "grandmotherly owner" and "cheap prices" she gave in.

After explaining to her that I would call a cab to take me back to the school she drove off back down the street we had just driven up.

I waved goodbye in a friendly manner before promptly turning around and walking the few blocks remaining between me and the motel.

As promised I called the only cab company in all of Mystic Falls once I found my spare spark plug. Within twenty minutes of them picking me up I was back with my now functioning truck. It was by then one of the only cars that had remained in the parking lot. Only those of teachers speckled the stretch of pavement.

Strangely one of them looked familiar. The white Tahoe was a common car, but it sparked a memory. Alaric Saltzman had the same car. I had seen it once before when we had crossed paths while hunting. He had showed up in the town where I had taken down a nest of demonic vampires literally just after the job had been finished. Apparently he hadn't gotten the memo that I had already claimed the job as my own so he showed up thinking he had a case. It was only by chance that we ran into each other at a local pub. I had neglected to get all of the blood off of my body and he happened to notice it. Thinking I was a vampire he began to question me. I soon realized this, though, and displayed my lack of vampiric attributes to him.

With a quick apology and a few harmless questions we parted ways.

But now here we were. In the same town and on likely the same hunt. Only this time it was me who came later this time.

After entering the building I made my way towards his classroom. He was visible through the glass pane in the door. Papers yet to be graded were piled up on his desk, and his fingers twirled his pen around and around.

Raising my hand I knocked on the wooden door. His head lifted up from the copious amount of work and his eyes found mine.

"Come in," he said while placing his pen back down on the desk.

I turned the doorknob and swung the door open.

"Cori, right?" he asked. I nodded in confirmation. "What can I do for you?" He smiled up at me, no recognition in his face other than that gained from my time in his class.

"What, you don't remember me?" I smirked slightly. A look of confusion crossed his face.

"Cori Smith, from first period."

"Yes, but no. Come on, think harder."

"I don't understand." Concentration became the dominant expression on his face. He was trying and failing to recognize me.

"I know I'm not the most prominent girl there is, but really? Not even one bit of a memory? I'm offended." He stood up and walked around his desk. His hand drifted slightly toward his back pocket, no doubt where he was keeping a stake at the moment.

"Who are you?" His tone grew more serious by the second.

"Alright, we went through this already. I'm not a vampire. You'd think you'd remember someone you met less than a year ago."

There was the spark that I had been looking for.

"Wow. That was you?" He shook his head. "You looked so much younger. Too young to be in the hunting business, that's for sure, and you still are. Wait, what are you doing here?" His focus came back to the present, as he leaned back against his desk.

"I hadn't heard of any hunters being in the area for several months, Mr. Never-pays-attention-to-hunter's-rules. Good job not mentioning it to anyone that you already had this case covered by the way. So I decided to stop in after seeing a few too many animal attacks in past news reports."

"It's been quite a while since we've had any of those."

"Yeah, it has. Which brings up the question why are you still here, working as a history teacher of all things?" Drawing him out and seeing him scramble for lies was fun. I already knew half of the story, and he probably thought I knew none of it.

"Same reason you're here, to hunt."

"Ah, right, which is the reason that you've been here since November?"

"I've been trying to gather intel on where other vampires might be." His eyes narrowed as he gathered a false backstory.

"Really? Well I guess that I don't need to stay here anymore. You've obviously got this whole thing under control." I raised an eyebrow at him, challenging his lies. He held steady, eyes still narrowed. Our eyes waged a silent war, though I tried to give off the appearance that I was losing. Bring him up, then send him crashing down.

A sparkle entered his eyes, believing he had won the battle.

"Oh come on," I loudly interrupted the silence, exasperation in my voice, my arms flinging out to the side. "Elena already told me everything!"

His eyes widened at this revelation. He had been caught red handed.

"You really think that I'm stupid enough, first of all not to find out some information on the situation, and second of all to spot such a blatant lie?"

"I'm not lying." He crossed his arms defensively, attempting to still convince me that he hadn't lied.

"I'm kind of offended that you think I would believe that," I scoffed. I sat down in one of the desks and kicked my feet up onto its wooden surface. Alaric began to open his mouth in retort, but he only looked like a fish out of water.

"So tell me why you decided to side with the thing that you've been hunting your whole life?" I cocked my head to the side, and he sighed in resignation.

"It's complicated."

"Isn't it always."

"It started with my wife, Isobel. Damon Salvatore killed her a few years ago. I came here searching for him. I wanted revenge, penance for killing her. But when I got here I met Jenna, Elena's aunt. Elena had been searching for her mother, after finding out she was adopted. Her name was Isobel. I asked Jenna about it and it wasn't just a coincidence. Elena's mother was my wife. Later I met Damon, and confronted him. He taunted me, told me that Isobel had begged him to turn her. I couldn't believe it, there was no way. But it was true. And then he killed me."

This part was unexpected. Of course I expected the elder Salvatore to pull a move like that after his none too friendly reaction towards me. But the fact that Alaric had died and then came back was astounding.

"How? Was it like one of those things where you die for like a second before being resurrected? Or…" I trailed off. Had he been the subject of a demon deal? Or even more insanely, brought back by an angel?

"My ring, actually." He held pulled a silver band from around his finger and held it up. The stone in the center appeared to be a large piece of Lapis Lazuli. "It brings the wearer back if they're killed by any supernatural being." I admired the ring with a sense of caution as he slipped it back onto his hand.

"That ring can't be good. You can't just come back from the dead without there being a price." My eyebrows were pulled together in worry. His blue eyes showed complete disregard. Nothing that I would say would stop him from wearing the ring that reversed death, and I wouldn't try to. It wasn't my job to meddle in another hunter's affairs.

"It hasn't done anything bad yet, so I think I'll keep it." He raised his eyebrow and slid the silver metal back around his finger.

"Well continuing on, how did you come to be friends with the vampire who killed you?"

"The common motive to stop the vampires that escaped from the tomb and to protect Elena."

I nodded in respect. His drive was admirable. But it might also blur his judgement, cause him to make decisions that might not be the best for everyone. I knew that Alaric was a great hunter, and a good guy, but I had to stay. Two hunters are better than one, especially when one is so closely tied to the targets himself.

Alaric seemed to know this somehow.

"You're staying, aren't you?"

"Yup. But you seem to trust these guys, so for your sake, I won't kill them..." A thankful glimmer entered his blue eyes, "yet. Understand that if they hurt anyone that doesn't deserve it, I will not hesitate to cut them, and anyone who stands in my way, down." Alaric scanned me, analysing my words. He slowly accepted what I had said, nodding with apprehension.

"Well," I stood up out of the small desk, "if there is nothing else, I'm gonna get going. See you tomorrow."

He waved. "See you tomorrow."


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: I kinda am still trying to figure out if I want to continue with this, but reviewing and favoriting will definitely help me determine this; so yeah, go for it if you like the story, and have a nice day!**

That weekend I woke with a groan. Elena had texted me, waking me up with an annoying beep. It included directions to the Lockwood estate, and a time for when I should be there. Unfortunately that time was in just an hour. But what did people say about being fashionably late?

The whole drive to the Lockwood's I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like there, with the whole setting up project. I had only ever been to a benefit for the orphanage before, and even then I had just been a showpiece to get rich people's money. The lost puppy look really does work for getting donations. I had a feeling that this would be very different from the small fundraiser that had been held in a Day's Inn conference room.

When I came to the estate I realized just how different it was.

The mansion was large enough that everyone at St. Agnes' orphanage could share a room comfortably. There was even a fountain that could probably be considered an Olympic swimming pool.

And I thought my motel was nice.

Even as I stepped out of the car I couldn't help but marvel at the massive mansion. It didn't even look like it could be someone's house. A hotel, maybe, but a home? How could a single family require that much space?

As my mind came back down to Earth I realized that I had no idea where Elena was. I texted her, but directions to where she was were so vague that I had no idea what they even meant. With grounds this big I didn't even have an idea as to where I should search for her. Now I was stuck, lost among strangers on unfamiliar property. Just great.

A larger group of people seemed to be working inside the house, so I figured that it would be the place where I received directions as to what to do.

As I entered the mansion I was greeted by the sight of unfinished work and people swarming around like bees trying to finish their jobs. Two people that I recognized from Elena's many introductions at school were carrying a heavy looking table through the foyer, visibly struggling with the weight. Rushing over to help them before they dropped the probably very expensive table, I caught the edge just before the blond boy, Matt's, grip faltered. "Whoa there, don't want to drop this," I smiled slightly and lifted our end higher off of the ground. Tyler, the dark-haired guy, continued to shuffle backwards while Matt followed cautiously.

He smiled thankfully towards me, albeit embarrassed about having a girl pick up his slack.

"Thanks." He grinned, and his white teeth shone. "Cori, right?" His sparkling blue eyes never faltered from my own.

"Yup. And you're Matt," I turned my head to his accomplice, "and you're Tyler."

"You got it," Tyler grunted as he rearranged the table in his hands.

"Boys!" a loud and motherly voice called out from across the room. Evidently she hadn't noticed me behind Matt's larger form. "Be careful with that! It's from the 1800s." She said something quickly to the red-haired woman next to her before yelling back to us "Tyler!"

Her heels clicked on the marble floors as she quickly approached us.

"Mom, we got it," he tried to placate his mother.

As she drew nearer she noticed me behind her son's friend.

"Oh, hello. I don't believe we've met." Her eyes scanned my distressed jeans and worn leather jacket and her red lip quivered slightly in disapproval. I never really fit into the rich people's standards. She held out her hand with reservation, which I grasped over the table, doing my best to make it rough and strong to annoy her. I didn't want to associate myself with someone like her in the future if she was so ready to treat me poorly after a single glance.

"We wouldn't have, me and my dad just moved into town a few weeks ago." I wracked my mind for an escape from Mrs. Lockwood. "Oh, look over there! Heavy-lifting, my favorite." As soon as Matt had a good grip on the table I dashed off in the direction from which everyone carrying large boxes and tables was coming.

A little while later after transporting a several tables and boxes I finally located Elena. She was just entering the Lockwood Mansion when I caught sight of her.

Unfortunately I was not able to get away from my job of carrying another old table for another few minutes, so when I entered the Mansion she was already gone.

I tried looking out the windows for her, but to no avail. Turning around I decided to search further into the house. Maybe she had just gone to the bathroom. But that thought was discarded when five minutes later I still was unable to find her.

With a sigh I began to search for an exit in the huge house.

Suddenly I was pinned to the wall, in a very familiar situation with a very familiar man. His hand wrapped around my neck, threatening to rip out my throat if need be.

His head cocked to the side, blue eyes filled with questions and danger.

"Now what do we have here?" Damon asked playfully, eyes widening and dark eyebrows rising further up his forehead.

"Again- Can't- Breath-" I gasped out, my voice heavily strained by the tightening fingers surrounding my neck. I tried to pry his hands loose, but he was too strong.

He thought this over for another few seconds, probably remembering the last time that I managed to stake him. Rolling his eyes, he released my neck. This time he was smart enough to pin my wrists by my shoulders to prevent the same incident from happening again.

"Always a pleasure," I bit out sarcastically.

"I don't have time for this," he growled, still insulted from the last time I managed to best him. "Why are you here? Who are you?"

"Same reason as you, I guess. When a mommy and-"

He slammed me into the wall again, his body pressed tightly against mine, trying to seem threatening. His stood taller, and I could feel his muscles tense against mine. I stared up into his striking blue eyes, daring him to do that again.

"I'll ask you one more time. Who are you and why. Are. You. Here?"

"My name's Cori. And why don't you ask your buddy Alaric why I'm here? Your brother maybe? Or how about Elena? I'm sure they'd love to give you a full backstory, maybe provide you with their copies of the manuscript." As I taunted him he seemed at first unfazed. But underneath his calm facade he held a mounting anger which threatened to burst if I were to push too hard.

He opened his mouth to retort, but was halted from doing so by his brother's intrusion.

"Damon!" He sped over faster than the blink of an eye and slammed him away from me, out through a pair of doors that led to a porch covered with flowers. His chest puffed out in challenge. "Back off."

"Really, you're protecting a hunter?" Damon drawled out, anger filling the gaps between offense and disbelief. "Let me remind you that she tried to kill me!"

"Yeah, and pretty soon I'll be trying to also. Don't. Touch. Her."

"Does Elena know about that you've already found yourself a new little girlfriend," Damon bit back sarcastically. Stefan let it roll off of his shoulders, unfazed by the comment. "Sir Stefan, heading for the rebound. Apparently you're not as much of a goody-goody as I thought you were."

"Cori's not going to hurt us," Stefan ignored his arrogant brother's remark.

"Oh really, and next you're going to tell me that Katherine isn't a psycho bitch."

"Would you just listen-"

"No."

"How both of you shut up." I stepped between the feuding brothers, my voice more imposing than they had both expected. Stefan smartly closed his mouth, but Damon, of course, opened his mouth to no doubt say something stupid. I gave him a pointed look, and miraculously he dropped whatever he was going to say.

"First of all, you're being a bit of a hypocrite. Unless you somehow didn't know that Alaric was a hunter too. Second of all, Stefan already said it. I'm not going to kill you. As long as you don't do anything to provoke me. It may come as a shock to you, but I don't kill every vampire on sight."

"Then what was that at the bar then?" Damon accusingly sent my way.

"I don't take too kindly to vampires who try to compel me and then attack me in an alleyway." Damon narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, muscles tightening and then relaxing. "By the way, that is one of the things which will provoke me, so if you care for your life, don't try to compel me ever again."

"You're on vervain, why does it even matter?" Damon complained. I didn't have any idea what vervain was, but the way he said it made it seem like something which stopped compulsion.

"I'll pretend that you didn't say that to preserve what little intelligence you have left. And now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go find Elena."

Before either vampire had a chance to protest I left the room and found my way out of the mansion.

Across the lawn I spotted Elena helping with sorting masks. Though she tried to work on the project, her expression read of distraction and worry.

"Elena!" I called as I started to walk in her direction. A look of relief at not having to work any longer crossed her face.

"Sorting masks is ten times worse than it sounds," she sighed. I laughed awkwardly before moving on to the more important topic at hand.

"So I ran into Damon a few minutes ago…" Her eyes widened in fear, having undoubtedly heard about our previous encounter.

"What did he say to you, what did he do?" Elena's eyes worriedly scanned my body for sign of injury.

"He wanted to know why I'm here, that's all," I tried to ease her worry. "It's alright, Stefan stopped Damon from doing anything further." Forehead still creased and lips pressed tightly together, she nodded.

Deciding to halt the menial task of sorting masks, we walked over to a set of stairs and sat down. Elena took out her phone and began texting someone, probably Stefan or Damon. A few seconds later frustration and shock filled her face before she furiously started texting once more.

"What's wrong?" I asked, hoping I wasn't being invasive.

"Once again I'm being left out of the loop. Stefan didn't even bother to tell me Damon was here, and that Bonnie is with them."

"Do you think he's just trying to stick to the whole role of breaking up that you've got going on?"

"I'm sure he is, but I still hate this feeling of being useless."

"How about I go look around for them. Seeing as I didn't just recently break-up with a vampire to avoid the wrath of this 'Katherine' bitch, it'll be much less suspicious if I get caught looking for them."

Her forehead creased in thought before she nodded. "But text me any new information when you can."

"Alright." Placing my hands on my knees and pushing myself upwards I began my search for Elena's friends.

My first thought was to look inside the house, but a gut feeling told me otherwise. Instead I started to circle the house, looking in every direction in hopes of catching a glimpse of one of the Salvatores or Bonnie.

Halfway around the house I came upon a driveway. Suddenly a man called out in pain before the dull sound of body hitting pavement could be heard. I moved as quietly as possible and ducked behind a corner of the house.

"I'm sorry," another voice, female, said. From my new vantage point I was able to see the source of the commotion. It was Bonnie, Stefan, and Damon, the last of whom promptly walked past the witch and kneed the unknown man in the face. What were they up to?

Stefan started ruffling through the man's pockets for something of importance. At last he pulled out a set of keys which he tossed to Damon. Bonnie hopped into the awaiting jeep, presumably the man's, while the brothers loaded the guy into the trunk. Damon walked around the car and got into the driver's seat, and finally the two drove off, leaving Stefan behind.

I had two options at this point. One, I could report back to Elena, and confront Stefan; or two, I could follow Damon and Bonnie. Of course, the first one meant I would have to stay at Castle Lockwood and deal with the people of the upper class.

With that in mind it wasn't a hard decision.

Pulling out of the driveway I tried to recall the roads that I had studied on my map of the city. I had no chance of spotting the jeep again to lead me there, but the Salvatore boarding house seemed like the most likely place to take an unconscious dude.

Thankfully Mystic Falls was a small town, and with a little direction from a woman walking her dog I managed to find the boarding house.

Before entering the driveway I shut off my rumbling truck. Driving up to the house would alert them of my arrival, and I didn't want to waste any of the surprise that I potentially could use. Instead I decided to walk the remaining distance and hope that I wouldn't need a speedy getaway.

As I approached the door, back pushed against the side of the house, the front door swung open, followed by the exit of Bonnie and Caroline. Hurriedly I flattened myself to the wall and held my breath. Caroline may be a new vampire, but that wouldn't stop her from noticing an extra person's breath. Luckily she seemed to preoccupied with Bonnie to notice as I shuffled along the wall behind them.

Silently as I could I lunged for the door. My fingers clasped around its edge a second before it would have closed.

Checking over my shoulder to see that neither of Elena's friends had heard me I proceeded into the lion's den.


	8. Chapter 7

The first thing I noticed was the sound of someone struggling against chains, extremely hard it seemed, judging by the muffled screams and the sound of a chair scraping against wood flooring. I didn't bother admiring the lavish decor of the house as I approached the source of the noise. Reflexively I pulled out a concealed stake.

A sudden shift in the air and my arm flew up. But it never got any higher up than my waist as a hand caught my wrist in a tight grip. Damon pulled me closer. "You really think I'm that oblivious," he whispered in my ear before shoving me away and stalking away towards another room down the hall. I followed hesitantly. The source of the noise was apparently in the library, and it was issued by the man from before bound to a chair in heavy chains.

"Come to enjoy the show?" he called over his shoulder with a smirk. He bent down and picked up an iron poker which had been resting in the lit fireplace.

The man struggled even more, his eyes darting to me, asking me for help. But if my suspicions were correct I wouldn't be releasing him any time soon.

"This feisty little guy must be Mason Lockwood," I stated, moving over to lean against the wall.

"I assume Elena told you," he remarked in response.

Mason struggled even more, knowing now that I wouldn't be helping him. Damon stood from his position by the fireplace, the red hot iron poker in hand. Mason continued to struggle in his bonds, so much so that his chair toppled over backwards, leaving Damon standing over him.

"What?!" Mason yelled in desperation. His eyes grew wide in fear, before squeezing closed as Damon slowly thrust the hot poker into his chest. He screamed in pain and anger, tears escaping from the corners of his eyes.

"You can hurt, good to know. I was afraid you were gonna be some beast with no affinity for pain." Damon bent down and pulled back his shirt, watching as the wound healed back up. "Oh, but you heal quickly. Not good. Guess I'll just have to keep applying pain." Damon bent down and abruptly pulled up the chair, getting ready for round two of truth or death.

I scrunched up my nose as the familiar smell of burning flesh invaded my senses.

"What, are you a big baddy hunter who hates seeing poor werewolves getting tortured?" Damon mocked me upon seeing my expression. He resumed his position of heating up the poker once more, leaning against the wall above the fireplace. The orange glow illuminated his face brightly, casting odd shadows across his sharp jawline and cheekbones.

"Oh I really don't care what you do with the werewolf. I've had enough experience on both sides with this kind of stuff. It's the smell that I can never really get used to." His head swiveled sideways to me, wondering about the deeper implications in my words, monitoring my expression. But after a few seconds of staring each other down, of challenging one another, he resumed his questioning of Mason.

"So… Katherine. How do you know her? What is she up to? We're both dying to know."

Mason spit on the floor, hatred permeating the air around him. But despite the now white-hot poker that hovered over his abdomen he refused to speak.

"We have all day." Damon stuck the poker into Mason once more, eliciting pained screams from the werewolf.

Seeing this man being tortured should have made me feel something. But knowing he was a werewolf dulled my sensitivity. There was a time that I sympathised with monsters like him. That was the mistake which resulted in the life of my partner, Joey. I wasn't the same for weeks, and I held onto my new grudge tightly for months.

It was a simple mission, a werewolf out of control in a small suburban town. We investigated for nearly a week, taking every precaution as the full moon got closer. We had worked together for even months, becoming a well-oiled machine that could stand against all sorts of supernatural creatures. Of course, that didn't help when joey was bitten by a second werewolf that snuck up behind us. I don't know how we could've missed that, how it even snuck up on us. It was a rookie mistake.

We killed them, but Joey couldn't stand the thought of becoming one. He shot himself the next day.

Joey was right, for once. When it comes right down to it, the wolf is uncontrollable. It's better to put it down than to take that risk.

"When did you two meet?" Damon prodded. "Did she seduce you, tell you she loved you? You're supernatural so she can't compel you. I'm sure she used her other charms. Katherine's good that way."

Close to the door there was the sound of footsteps, and Jeremy walked into the room. He approached a table and set down the box he had been holding. He cocked his head upon seeing me casually leaning on the wall, obviously confused about why I was here.

"I thought I told you to leave," Damon interrupted him.

"Uh," he shook off some of the confusion, "yeah, I found something in Ric's box of stuff." His eyes flickered over to me once more.

"Ooo," Damon stood up from a crouch and put the poker back into the flames. "What is it?"

Out of the box Jeremy pulled out a dried up plant that looked all too familiar, wrapped in a cloth. "I did a search on my phone," Jeremy said. "It's a plant. Aconitum Vulparia. It grows in the mountainous areas of the northern hemisphere. Commonly known as aconite, blue rocket-"

"And wolfsbane," I cut in, pushing myself off the wall and walking over to the two boys.

"Sorry, but what is she doing here," Jeremy finally asked.

"I've been asking myself that too," Damon grumbled. "Since you seem to know so much about it, why don't you tell us what you know about it?"

"Well," I took the plant from Jeremy and unwrapped the cloth around it, "For starters it's only native to the northern hemisphere. It's known in several mythologies, though most of them are lies or half-truths. It is toxic to every natural species in large doses, but when it comes to werewolves..." I raised my eyebrow as Mason groaned. "This guy is in for a treat."

Damon devilishly grinned as he took the plant from my hand and stalked over to his victim.

"What's Katherine doing in Mystic Falls?" No response. The purple flower brushed against his skin, leaving a painful looking burn in its wake. More screams echoed out of Mason's mouth, hoarse and more pained than before.

Jeremy shuffled uncomfortably by my side, unaccustomed to torture.

"You don't have to stay," I said softly, never taking my eyes off of Mason. "You don't need to see this." Jeremy just shook his head, determined to stay and show his worth.

"Why is she here?" Damon asked once more. Mason clamped his jaw in pain, looking up at his torturer in defiance.

"She's here with me. Why do you ask, you jealous?"

"How rude of me." Damon widened his eyes in mock surprise. "You know, I just realized, I didn't offer you anything to eat." His face contorted into a vicious expression, and he suddenly thrust the toxic plant into the werewolf's mouth, rubbing it into his face. "Yummy!" Coughing and hacking and spitting wasn't enough to get the flower out of his mouth. Blood combined with spit as Mason tried in vain to stop the pain and rid his mouth of the poisonous plant.

Meanwhile I resumed my position against the wall as Damon continued to question Mason.

"Why do you want the moonstone?"

"Screw you!" Already so close to breaking? Insults were always a last resort. This guy was probably the weakest werewolf I'd ever met, even under the threat of wolfsbane.

"Ahhh! Wrong answer!"

"If he was gonna say anything, he would have already!" Jeremy protested. Seeing this would take a toll on him, especially if Damon was going to do what I thought he was going to.

"I'm taking your eyes now." Damon disregarded Jeremy's pleas.

"The well!" Mason frantically scrambled to avoid the pain of the flower. His head swiveled between me and Damon, hoping that it would be enough to save him. "You can find it there." But that wasn't enough to satisfy Damon, as he lifted the wolfsbane up threateningly.

"I know where it is. I want to know what it does and why you want it."

"I'm getting it for Katherine." Broken. Whatever he was holding back wouldn't stay secret now.

"Why?" Damon circled Mason, his face showing curiosity and hints of other indecipherable emotions.

"She's gonna use it to lift the curse." He spoke as if this was obvious. Of course, why wouldn't she want to remove the curse placed upon something which could kill her with a single bite. _So_ obvious. Not.

"Of the moon?" Apparently Damon thought the same thing as I did. "Now, why would a vampire help a werewolf break a curse that keeps them from turning whenever they want?"

"So I wouldn't have to turn anymore."

"Why?"

"Because she loves me." I raised my eyebrow, questioning the little intelligence of this already idiotic man

Chuckles cut through the air like a freshly sharpened knife. "Now," he laughed, "- now I get it. You're just stupid. Katherine doesn't love you. She's using you, you moron." For some reason this came off kind of personal for Damon. Maybe they had past relations. Elena couldn't have possibly told me everything about everyone.

"I'm done talking." I wasn't too sure that he had much more to say anyway. And that would mean only one thing, especially for the vampire who had what seemed like a personal vendetta against the werewolf.

"Yes, you are." Damon handed Jeremy the wolfsbane, having no further use for it until the next werewolf came along. "It's time to take a walk, Jeremy."

"I'm staying," Jeremy said, puffing out his chest. It was my time to step in.

"No, you're not." I stood taller, and stood in front of Jeremy. Though he was about five inches taller than me, I had the upper hand when it came to power.

"You can't tell me what to do! I barely even know who you are, and you're not even that much older than me, Cori. I'm staying, Damon," he looked past me to the vampire, "he's had enough."

"Just help Tyler," Mason hoarsely said. "Don't let this happen to him."

"Leave now, Jeremy. I don't care if you don't know me, it doesn't stop me from knowing that you don't want to see this. I'm not questioning your strength or 'manliness,'" I prodded his chest, knocking him back a step, "I'm warning you. You don't want this on your conscience, to weigh you down every day and threaten your sanity. And trust me, I know all about this shit." He stepped back another two feet and I closed the space so that there were only centimeters between us. "You don't want this. He is going to die, and you can't stop it, so you're going to leave now."

Jeremy's eyes widened, fearing me and recognising the whole situation at hand. Eyes darting between the three of us, he finally spun on his heel and left. The door slammed behind him, and I turned back to Damon and Mason. Respect showed on Damon's face, and fear on Mason's.

"Back to business now, boys," I clapped my hands together.

"Yes, as our dear Cori has said, back to business."

"I love her," Mason said, mostly to me, probably hoping to appeal to my female sense of romance. Honestly, with my lack of romantic history, he had a better chance of gaining Damon's sympathy.

"Oh, I know," Damon practically spat out. "I've been where you are. But Katherine will only rip your heart out. Let me do it for her." Forcefully Damon thrust his hand into Mason's chest, emitting a groan from the dead-man. Blood dripped down Damon's arm and out of Mason's mouth. In a second his heart was no longer in his rib cage, and his eyes rolled back into his head.

One less uncontrolled predator in this world, and one less man. Fortunately the death of the wolf made up for the death of the man who was around the 29 other days of the moon cycle.

"That went quicker than expected," I mused, coming to stand over the now deceased man. "These things can take hours, though I'm sure you've had some experience," I now peered up at Damon with a smirk.

"Seriously, who are you?" he half-yelled. I just bent down and tried to figure out how to unlock Mason from the chair.

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"Are you even supposed to be in high school, or are you just a twenty year old trying to relive your glory days?" He suddenly came to stand by my side, breaking the chains with a single pull. With that problem solved I stood, finding my eyes coming level to his chin before staring into his curious ice blue eyes. His forehead was wrinkled, eyebrows drawn together, a combination of disbelief and concentration, trying to figure me out.

"Nope, this is really my Junior year, if you don't count repeating ninth grade. I am seventeen, going on eighteen this July. Besides, do I look old enough to want to lie about my age?"

"I still don't trust you." His sudden switch of topics brought a harsher edge to the conversation.

"The feeling's mutual. Now, if you don't mind, your royal pain-in-the-ass, we should probably clean this-" I gestured to the body and canvas, "-up."

Shaking his head in resignation he broke the remaining chains and threw them to the side. I grabbed Mason's feet while Damon hoisted up his upper body. Together we rolled him up in the canvas.

As we gave the roll a last shove Stefan walked in with a milky white stone in hand. Some confusion played across his face at the sight of me.

"All this for that?" Damon complained while he stood up.

"Yep." Stefan tossed Damon the moonstone, which he caught gracefully before inspecting it up close.

"I see you've exercised your usual restraint," Stefan nodded to the bundled up werewolf, unsurprised at the sight of it. "Cori?"

"What can I say? I think he was the perfect gentleman," I said in an uppity voice. He looked doubtful, though I wouldn't expect much else from him. Earlier Damon and I had literally been at each other's throats, and now I was practically defending him. There were obvious reasons behind Stefan's thoughts. Hell, even I thought it was a bit weird for me to switch between the opposites so fast; I'm not exactly known for being the most forgiving person.

"Had to be done," Damon almost completely disregarded me. The phone which he had taken from Mason earlier reappeared in his hand, and he immediately began texting someone. The contact name read Carol, presumably the woman I met earlier, Tyler's mom. "Carol, big opportunity in Florida, I'm gonna be gone for a _long_ time." Damon read his writing out loud. "Will send for my things once I get settled. Much love, Mason." With a dramatic flare he pushed the send button.

"Let's get rid of the body," Stefan declared. But before he could take a step, Damon had already searched the phone and interrupted him.

"Oh, last number dialed. I wonder who that could possibly be?" A mischievous glint settled in his eye, and he pressed the redial button. Stefan stepped forward frantically.

"No, no, no! Don't provoke her!" By the look on Damon's face I could tell that the other person had already picked up. Stefan tried again to grab the phone, but Damon merely pushed him back. Resigning to his doomed fate he slapped away Damon's hand and walked away in frustration to the opposite side of the room.

"Wrong boy toy," Damon teased spitefully. I had no idea what Katherine was saying as vampire hearing is not one of my abilities, so I stepped closer to Damon, putting about a three inches between us. As I stood on the balls of my feet, elevating myself so that my ear matched where Damon's was, he smirked at me and my inconvenience. I just smiled as if there was no problem before tuning into what Katherine was saying.

" _I assume Mason is with you?"_ A voice that sounded almost exactly like Elena's sounded out. I knew that they were supposed to be doppelgangers, but it had been a hard concept to grasp up until this point. You don't exactly meet identical not-twins everyday.

"He's right beside me! Although, his heart's across the room."

" _You shouldn't have_." She simply sounded annoyed. Damon seemed to be right about her being a heartless bitch.

"I've had a very busy day today. I killed a werewolf, found a moonstone. Hey, did you know that he hid the moonstone in the bottom of a well full of vervain? I guess he didn't trust you very much. Although, he did love you. Poor guy. Hey, where are you? Because, you know, I could bring him over. Last goodbyes and all that." He said this all in such a mocking tone, but it held a serious undertone to it. His joking attempts to get Katherine to reveal her hiding place were laughable, but not in this situation. I was almost tempted to get him to shut up, now understanding Stefan's worry for what his brother might do that would send her over the edge.

" _You have no idea what you've just done._ "

"Aww, did I put a kink in your master plan?" His tone seeped false pity from every seam. "I'm so sorry."

" _Do you honestly believe that I don't have a plan B? And if that fails, a plan C, then a plan D, and… you know how the alphabet works, don't you? Send my love to Stefan._ " A click echoed from the phone and the line went dead. I lowered myself so that my feet were now flat on the ground, while Damon sank back and leaned against the table.

Both brothers' faces were scrunched up in confusion, mine probably reflecting theirs to a certain degree.

It couldn't have been a minute later when Stefan's phone began to ring. Pulling it out of his pocket, he clicked the answer key and put it up to his ear.

Immediately a worried look crossed his face. Damon's mirrored his as he listened in on the conversation. "Woah, woah, woah, slow down… Is she alright… Calm down… listen, she's going to be fine… Katherine did this?... alright, just call me with any news." With that he hung up the phone, sharing yet another glance with his brother, holding a silent conversation.

"What was it?" I broke the silence.

"That was Elena. Her aunt- her aunt is in the hospital." I felt my eyes widen in shock. "Katherine compelled her to stab herself."

Honestly I had no idea what to feel. I hadn't known Elena's aunt, Jenna, I hadn't even met her yet. But I knew Elena, and I knew her enough to know that she didn't deserve anything that had happened to her, anything that this bitch sent her way. I was gonna kill Katherine.

"We should bury the body." I spoke calmly, masking any emotion that I had at the moment. Staring between the two brothers for answers I could see they were stiff with hatred for Katherine and worry for Elena, though Stefan showed more outward signs of worry.

Stefan didn't even say a word, he just stormed out of the room, leaving the two of us to get rid of Mason's body.

"I take it it isn't always so fun around here," I quipped sarcastically as I walked over to the rolled up canvas.

"Oh no, the party's just getting started." No humor entered his eyes, only regret. Damon disregarded my attempt to lift up one end of the body and resorted to tossing it up onto his shoulder.

"I've got two shovels in my truck," I volunteered. Damon didn't respond. "I'll go get that then… Just don't go too far."

Running to my car I grabbed the shovels, all while pondering options for revenge against Katherine. Alongside those thoughts was the nagging thought of how impermanent all of this was, and that these attachments that I had formed already were going to be a pain in the ass later.

A small existential crisis later, and I was back on the front porch of the house. Damon had surprisingly waited for me, leaning lazily against the brick exterior walls.

"Let's bury a bitch."

Damon led me to an open spot in the woods surrounding his house and dropped the body on the forest floor. He made little haste to grab a shovel, so I shoved one of the two into his hands before beginning to dig the grave.

"Are you just gonna stand there, or are you going to actually contribute?" His forehead scrunched up before a smile crossed his face.

"Of course, princess," he mused, joining me in the small hole that I had started. "Wouldn't want you to chip a nail."

"I should say the same about you. And don't call me princess, dickhead." Damon snorted.

"Alright, princess." A pile of dirt thrown his way was enough to shut him up.

Two hours of digging and sarcastic remarks later we had dug a six foot hole. Damon hopped out of the hole with ease before offering me a hand up. Frankly it seemed like quite the insult that he thought that I couldn't get out on my own. I may not be a superhuman, but I have done quite a bit of exercise in my life. So, instead of taking the proffered hand, I grabbed the ledge, pulled myself up, and swung my legs onto the grass.

By then Damon was looking down at me with amusement.

Ignoring his patronizing looks, I stood up and circled the grave to stand over Mason's body. Damon followed.

With a shove, it landed at the bottom of the hole.

A half hour later and Damon and I had completely filled in the grave, with only a rough patch of dirt to show for it. Even then that would eventually disappear.

"Well, that's enough excitement for one day," I brushed my hands on my pants, leaving dirt-stains on the jeans. Turning around I started back to the house and my truck.

"Too much for a hunter?" Damon widened his eyes in mock-shock as he came to my side. "And here I was thinking you were a professional."

"Who said I was a professional." I winked back. "Oh, alas, I feel faint at this gruesome work. Bite me, I can not stand being a weak and pathetic human. I am no match for you!" My voice came out as airy and overdramatic, drawing yet another smirk from Damon, though this one could almost be described as a smile. "I'll have you know that burying a body was not on my agenda today."

"And you just so happened to stumble upon this?"

"Actually, yes. I had planned on helping Elena at the Lockwood's place-" I stopped short. "Shit!"

"What is it this time?"

"I have to call Elena, I said I'd call her, and now her Aunt is in the hospital, and, ugh!" Damon had a sudden flash of realization, remembering that he was supposed to be one of Elena's closer friends. "Sorry, as much as I'd love to chat, I've gotta go. See you later, Salvatore." At a quick jog I set off to where I had my car parked.

"You know, I never got your last name!" he called after me.

I spun around, continuing on my path, walking backwards. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

A/N: so I'm kinda back? it's been like a year, but whatever... I'm procrastinating and I miss writing, and what better way to procrastinate college aps than continue this story? I'll probably update more at first, because I had a lot written before I went AWOL, but after that it'll be maybe once every two weeks, depending on motivation and if I feel like this story is going anywhere. But yeah, review if you want to say anything or suggest stuff, there will also be a winchester interaction coming up in a few chapters, which one of you requested (I already was writing it before I disappeared)

so review, favorite and follow and I'll see you in the next chapter


	9. Chapter 8

My call to Elena was more emotional than I would have liked. Handling crying and emotional people is not my specialty, especially over the phone.

Luckily she had to hang up after a few minutes, so there was no unnecessary dialogue on my part. After that all I had left to focus on was the road… and that odd clanking sound coming from my currently slowing car.

Slowly I inched it to the side of the road and flipped on my hazards. If I couldn't fix this, the crap car would be going to the junkyard. Unlike a lot of other people, this car was the worst thing to ever happen to me. I got it for a hundred bucks off of Bobby if that says anything.

As I hopped out of the car I slammed the door shut behind be. Opening up the hood revealed a hot and smokey mess.

"You have got to be kidding me!" I kicked the bumper, trying to fan out the smoke.

After a quick inspection I found that the engine was completely shot. A new one would cost more than getting a new car.

With nothing left that I could do with my limited knowledge about cars, I tore off the plates, gathered anything traceable or suspicious out of the bed and glovebox, and called the towing company. The truck wasn't even filed under my name, and I didn't have any insurance, so if I left it there and claimed I just happened to see it while driving by I wouldn't have to pay anything out of pocket.

I debated calling a cab to drive me back to the motel once I got closer to the downtown area, but remembered the amount of cash I had blown on shopping and getting a cab to school earlier and grimaced. Spending money outside of the necessities would be stupid until I got another chance to pickpocket someone. Credit card scams were not something that I did very often, unlike most other hunters, especially on long term hunts where I could be traced much easier. When I could, I relied on what I stole and did hand-labor for cash on occasion.

Wanting to get away before the tow truck got there I began the trek back to the Salvatore house. My motel was on the opposite side of the city, but I was only about two miles away from the boarding house. One of them had to have a car, and if not I could wait there until morning before walking back. It was already getting dark, and, with all of my duffel bags which I had grabbed from the back of the car, I would more than likely catch the eye of some suspicious 911-calling person.

Ten minutes later a car which looked like Elena's, and probably was hers, passed by me. She didn't notice me walking on the opposite side of the road, probably too distressed to pay attention to me. Or maybe I resembled a sketchy criminal of some sort from the back, which wasn't too far of a stretch. I debated trying to get a ride from her instead, but shook off the thought, not wanting to bother her on top all of the shit going on in her life at the moment.

It was only a few minutes later that she passed me again, though this time I had my hood up so she definitely couldn't see that it was me.

The driveway leading up to the Salvatore house soon came into view, followed by my entry into the house once more. Now that there wasn't the distraction of investigating the Salvatores and Mason I took the chance to admire the furnishings.

The entire entryway and living room looked older than the rest of Mystic Falls. The house mirrored the timelessness of being a vampire, but it surprised me how warm the house felt, and not just the temperature; it had a lived-in feeling that was homey and welcoming.

"Back so soon?" Damon said, coming down the stairs. In his right hand he held a glass of a golden drink, most likely bourbon. "And here I thought I had finally gotten rid of you."

"And I thought I had finally escaped," I quipped back, shifting my bag uncomfortably on my shoulder. Man, it was heavy. "My car broke down about two miles away, engine's shot to hell. I need a ride back to where I'm staying, or I'm gonna stay on the couch here."

"Oh, you are not staying here," Damon vehemently protested as he walked over to a desk with a tumbler on it and set his glass down.

"Then you're driving me back. My place is on the other side of town, and frankly I don't care to walk that distance with seventy pounds on my back accompanied by prying eyes who may or may not call the cops on me."

"You'll be fine, I'm sure they won't call the cops. Goodbye." He moved to pick up the glass before I interrupted him.

"You really think that white picket-fence people are going to ignore someone like me, who looks a lot like someone that would rob them?"

He scrunched his eyebrows together in thought. "Fine. Just don't expect any more favors from me, princess."

"I wouldn't dream of it, dickhead."

The whole car ride was almost completely silent after that except for the occasional snarky comment. He seemed too lost in his own thoughts and guilt over instigating Katherine's actions against Elena's aunt to provide a casual banter or stream of questions. And, to be honest, I was grateful for the silence. I still had no idea what I was even doing, sitting in a car with a vampire who attacked me twice and still hadn't said anything that reassured me that I wouldn't die by his hands. Sure, I'd taken greater risks, but those were to end the life of a supernatural monster. Right now I was accepting a ride from a vampire with no ulterior motive.

"Well, this is my stop," I said as we pulled up to the B&B.

"You're lying." Damon's abrupt accusation surprised me as I went to open the door. I had completely forgotten that he could hear my heartbeat. Dammit.

"I'm pretty sure that I know where I'm staying." Scrambling to form an answer that avoided lying caused a spike in my heartbeat. Double dammit.

"And now you're nervous. I'm only going ask you once; where are you staying?"

"You know, I can just walk. Thanks for the ride." I moved again to open the door handle. Before I could even get a foot out his hand reached across my lap and shut the door .

Resigning, I slammed my head back into the headrest, groaning in annoyance. Damon's face was expectant, waiting for the truth.

"Fine. Just go straight for another two blocks, and turn left." The gear shifted out of park, and Damon steered us according to my directions. He seemed satisfied that I told the truth. I guess most people usually do try to lie a little harder, even if they are caught. "It's the fifth driveway on the right."

The blue Camaro rumbled down the road and jolted as he pulled it into the parking lot.

"The Mystic Falls Motel." His tone almost sounded mocking, annoying me even more.

"Welcome to my humble abode," I grumbled. Again I reached to open the door, but he was already on the other side, opening it for me.

"Ever the gentleman."

"I try to be." He held out his hand, displaying his usual smirk.

But I wasn't a lady. Instead I disregarded his hand completely, stood up, and gave him a half-assed death-glare. Unfortunately he failed to move, and I was left standing inches from him. Hot breath tickled my forehead in the cold air, leaving my face warm and tingly.

He made no attempt to move, so I cleared my throat and resorted to inching along the side of the car until I was free. Finally I opened the back seat door and swung the heavy duffel onto my shoulder.

"Thank you for taking time out of your ever so busy day just to drive me home." (That was sarcasm, if you couldn't tell.) "See you later."

"Oh, I can't just let you leave," he said, stopping me in my tracks. "You might have lied about this too. For all I know, you could be living in that bush over there."

"For all you know, I'm not lying. I know that you can hear my heartbeat."

"You wouldn't be the first to cheat the system." He was seriously getting on my nerves. Why couldn't he just let me live, or rather, go to my room in peace. With a heavy sigh I continued the walk back to my room. By the second sound of soft footfalls, Damon wasn't far behind.

My room was on the first floor, so there weren't any stairs to push him down, sadly.

Shoving the key into the lock and twisting it, I pushed open the door. Damon let out a low whistle at the state of the room. Not only was it completely messy, clothes and weapons scattered about, but my wall of vampires was not hidden by the hideous painting.

He paused at the doorway, probably musing that he was not stopped by an invisible barrier, before walking over to inspect the newspaper clippings and drawings that covered the wall.

"Well, you've certainly been doing your research," he mused, tracing the strings and images on the wallpapered surface. "Oh, look, there I am. It's really so sweet that you keep a picture of me on your wall, but you should know that I am not into people one tenth my age."

"Very funny, but I don't think that second part is true, based on the looks you've given hmm... just about every good looking female in town."

"Very funny," he copied before turning away from the wall and throwing himself onto my bed. He made himself comfy, arranging his arms behind his head to get a good angle to look at me with. "You know, this is possibly the shittiest place I have been in in over fifty years."

"Thanks for your opinion, and sure go ahead and make yourself comfortable on my bed. It's not like this I wanted to sleep or anything." With a thud I dropped my bags on the small table, rifling through them to make sure I had everything.

"Don't let me get in your way," he smiled, trying to fake seduction.

"The stake that is about to be in your chest if you don't move."

"Alright, alright, I get the hint." Damon rose up from the bed stalking over to stand next to me. Annoyingly he began to search through my other bag, investigating the various contents of the bag. He looked confusedly at the eclectic grouping of weapons, picking out rock salt bullets and a wicked sharp silver knife

"You know, you've go a lot of odd weapons for a teenager. Come to think of it, you're pretty young to be a hunter at all."

"You know, you're pretty spry for a senior citizen," I retorted, trying to draw the attention away from my hunting career. It worked, as he gasped, feigning hurt.

"And here I was, trying to be a considerate person, who cares for the wellbeing of America's youth!" Tenderly, he placed a hand over his non-beating heart.

"Yeah, well you're a bit late in my case."

"Come on, you're telling me that you're not knew to this game? You're seventeen," He emphasized the last bit. It was like he expected me to be some innocent youth just barely touched by the horrors of this world.

"I'll have you know that I am no amateur." Like he could think I was a rookie after the amount of times I had already staked him.

"Oh really, you expect me to believe that you were born to kill vamps?"

"No, I expect you to believe that I've been doing this for three years already." No response this time. Had I actually shocked Damon into silence? It wasn't that shocking, I thought. He'd probably killed girls way younger than fourteen, yet here he was, acting like I had told him that I had been sent off to war at the age of seven.

His ice blue eyes bored into the side of my head as I looked back down to my weapons bag. What did he even want? I shuffled my feet awkwardly as he continued to stare.

"Uh, um, I'll see you t- later I guess," I managed to stutter out, glancing sideways at him before looking away.

Again I was greeted with silence.

"Are you just gonna-" I continued, turning to look back at Damon, before noticing that he had already left. The door stood open, swinging back and forth slightly from the wind outside.

A large sigh escaped my mouth as I stopped sorting through my duffel. What had made me suddenly so incomprehensibly uncomfortable? I had never had this reaction to anything since I was a kid, and here, after a small incident with a vampire, I was acting like a socially inept child.

Intent on ridding my mind of the embarrassing episode, I ambled over to the small bathroom and turned on the sink. An unsteady stream of water poured into my cupped hands which I splashed onto my face. The cold water ran tracks down my cheeks and dripped down from the tip of my chin. While it felt insanely refreshing and revitalizing, it did little to rid me of the one prominent figure in my mind.

In the two days we had ever talked to each other, we had nearly killed each other twice, interrogated and killed a werewolf, and buried said werewolf's body in the middle of the woods. He had even managed to make me super uncomfortable for hardly any reason. And in these few hours spent together, I had somehow managed to feel more of my emotional range than I had in a long time. Here I was cracking jokes with a vampire, something a vengeful fourteen year old me could have never imagined. I must be going insane.

A/N: I got some story ideas going, so I hope u guys check out my profile, because I need honest suggestions! also winchesters next chapter possibly, most likely, so yeah


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